Football game



Junezs, 1940. al1-Em HAL 2,205,415

FOOTBALL GAME Filed Dec. 23, 1937 5 Sheets-Sheet l June 25, 1940 c. D. KEELY Er A1.

FOOTBALL GAME Filed Dec. 25, 1937 SNEL-.1:50

RIGHT LEF' LEFT LEFT SIShee'ts-Sheet 2 RUN DEFENSE A'r'roNEY a c. D. KEELY Er Ax.

FooTBALL GAME June 25, 1940.

Filed Dec. 23, 1957 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTORS ATTORNEY Patented June 25, 1940 -table football game involving b oth elements ofV- PATENT" 'orme' FOOTBALL` GAME Clifford D. Keely, Bloomfield, and Otto H.

Schwanemann, Jr.,

Schwanemann as slgnor Teaneck, N. J.

Newark, N. J.;

said to vGeorge Bartels, Jr.,

Application December 2 3, 1937, Serial No. 181,260 3 Claims. (el. 27s-94)' rOur present invention relates to an improved-' skill and chance. In our improved game a repre- I sentation of al football is moved upon a ield simulating an actual football playing field. After the ball has been put in play in a manner to` vr be described,the player having the ball is enabled to choose a play from several possible plays which in his opinion will best be calculated to advance the ball. At the same time the second 1 or'defensive player chooses one of a number of possible defensive plays which will most nearly the extent that he does anticipate the play, the

" to put the ball into play and determine its posianticipate the play of the first player, and to first player fails to advance the ball. In order tion prior tol the first down, we preferably provide one orgmore devices of chance, as for instance a dial and spinner, by means ofA which toy determine the position of the ball following'the *kick-01T- and also the run-back immediately following. Further use is made of suchdevice or devices in subsequent open plays, i. e., in the" Vcase of kicks, passes, etc., as will be described hereinafter, v VAccordingto our preferred embodiment, each one of a plurality of offensive plays may be answered by any one of a plurality of defensive f larA rank with the particular file involved. Fur- ,vence to the following detailed descriptionv taken lresults of the defensive plays are arranged in ranks, or vice versa, Each rank and each file of plays, the results of selected plays being arranged in ranks and files, e. g., the resultsV of the'ofn fensive plays being arranged in files, whereas the play-results has associated with it indicia or' legends giving'the types of play which are to be used, by .the player for making his "'selection. Means are then provided whereby the players, having chosen their respective plays, are 'enabled to View the result ofthe one as modified by the other, which result is to be found at the particuther in accordan'cewith our preferred ,embodiment, the defense indicia are the same as the offense, the arrangement being such that the defensive vplayer makes the best play when he anticipates theexact play of the offense. Moreover, to the extent thatv he approximates vthe exact play, :to such lextent does he check the offensive player.

. Our inventionwill be .best understood by referwith the annexed drawings in which:

provedfgame `with the cover` closed.-

-indicia constituting the schedule of plays both indicating theresults of the plays chosen by thel r'offensive and defensive players. yis provided for the defensive player in which is vmovable a slider Il to which is attached a loop I8 preferably of wire andof a size and shape to cover one complete `rank of squares'.V Similarly swivel or pivot 23, wherebywhen the ball changes 'hands theboard can be turned 180 so that the gpl'ayerwho was playing the defensive side on 'the board n oW plays the Aoffensive side.

Fig. 1 is a View in perspectiveof'ourimf sults Vof plays `on the board IU are concealed from Fig. 2 isan enlarged view in plan of the cover showing the dials used thereon.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of the chart'containing the' resultsA of play together with the fo'r'the offense and defense.

Fig. 4 is a view seen from the right of.A Fig. 1

"and showing an improved swivel mounting for the chart.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a representation 10 of a football field.

" As best seen in Fig. 3, IIB denotes' the board row or vice versa, thuspermitting the lprinting to be easily read by the player sitting opposite `sothat he may become acquainted with the strategy of the Offensive player. Similar rows I2 containing preferably the same legends or indicia are likewise provided for the second or defensive player. For each offensive play (the Yplays being numbered I to I6 as shown, although 1' more or less'may be employed) there is likewise la column of results, such columns or iiles con- 'in rows or ranks` opposite the schedule of plays f or the defensive player so that the result of a play by the offensive player will be determined by the intersection 0f the vertical column or 35 file chosen by the offensive player, with the hori- Zontal row or rank determined by the defensivev player.'

`Fig. 3 illustrates `a preferred arrangement-for Here a slot I5 a slider I9 having a loop 2B and movable in a 45 ffslot- ZIV is provided `for `the offensive player. Preferably the board `III is pivotally mounted upon a base 22, having legs 2I, by means of a the players during the time that the oiensive and defensive plays are being chosen. A preferred means for accomplishing this is in the form of a cover which is spaced slightly from the board I0 by a bead 26 at one side and feet -2`| at the opposite side in order to accommodate the loops I8 and 20, the cover being hinged as by means of a fabric 28 of suitable material glued to the cover 25 and the bead 26 or by other means.

As previously indicated, certain situationsv in the game are determined by chance, and'one convenient means providing for this areI dials 3l),`

3|, 32, 33. To economize space, dials 30 and 3| may be arranged concentrically as are dials 32 and 33. Each dial has a compound spinner 34 and 35, respectively, each spinner having two pointers as shown, one for the inner dial and one for the outer dial. Desirably concentric dials and the respective pointers therefor are provided with distinctive colors. Conveniently these dials are mounted upon the cover 25 which also may contain dials 36, 3l with pointers indicating the Y number of downs and quarters, respectively. The

dials are labelled in the drawings, dial being termed Receive kick, dial 3|, Run of pass,l dial 32, Field goal, and dial 33, Kick-off or punt- Fig. 5 shows at 4B a representation of the football lield, whereas 4| shows the representation of the football. The plan of eld 4U diliers from that of an actual field only in that lateral zones are provided by longitudinally extending lines 42.

` v The use to which such zones are put will be apparent from the illustrative plays about to be described. Illustrative plays of the game in which each player in effect plays the role of quarter back and utilizes the field and ball 4| in the rst described form of the game are as follows,V the usual football rules being employe where applicable. 1

' To start `the'game, it is determined by lot which player shall have .the decision to kick off or receive. Assuming it is player A, and he I choosesvto kick, he spins the pointer on the dial marked Kick-off and the result is indicated Y by the end of the pointer arm, reading upon the inner circle 33.

stops at the segment of the inner circle m-arked 35 yards 2 zones left. `The ball is thereupon advanced from` the usual kick-off position, i.y e.,

As lll-yard line, a distance of 35 yards, and 2 zones to As left of the center zone and there located. Zones are indicated by the lines running parallel in the length of the field. Left or right is decided by facing in the direction the ball is travellingat the time. Player B, now the defense, spins the pointer on dial No. 30 marked Receive kick, the assumed indicated result bef ing vthat the ball is run back 30 yards, 2 zones `to Bs left, thus placing the ball in the. center lateral zone and upon Bs own yard line. The

l ball is in the center zone again, because the direction of travel has beenreversed and therefore left and right on the return is alsoI reversed.

i usual l0 yards to go.

B is now the offense, his first do-wn with the B is now the oiensive r. playerand the game board is now turned until theside reading offense is in front of B, who

.. will now use the corresponding play selector,

While A, now thel defensive player, will use the defensive play selector. A spacer element, not

shown, denoting 10 yards is placed at the position f of the ball and in the direction of As goal. B,

influenced partly by the position of the ball on the -eld also possibly aiming to outvvit A, men- ,theoliensive slider. play until an-agreed time period is up, the scoring being the same as in the ordinary football game.-

In the assumed p-lay, the pointerA For example, B moves slider 23 to play nurn- 4bered 5, denoted ,left tackle, while A moves to play numbered 2. By raising the dial board the result of the two selected plays is read in the square determined by the intersection of the two sliders. r In the plays given, this result is 3 yards gain for B. The ball is thereupon moved 3 yards forward, and, since it is a left tackle play, one zoneto Bs left. Should the result havebeen no gain, the ball would still have been moved one Zone left. It is now second down with 7 yards to go, vwhereupon A and B again choose i their respective o-lensive and defensive plays. `This vtime B chooses play No, 9, forward pass righ, while A chooses play No. 4, right end The result is read as: 15 yard toss The ball thereupon is moved forward 15 yards, and since the play was a forwardpass right, one zone to the'right.

Now, to determine if the player intercepting thel o ball is .in the open or tackled at the point of interception, A and B move their respective pointers to plays 6 or 7. The net result of Bs choice ofeitlier play 6 or 7 and As choice of' leither 6 or '7 determines now the result. Assu.m`

ing B moved to '7 while A moved to 6, the result is read as in the open, such designation pertaining to this type of play only. A now spins the dial 30 marked ,Run o=r pass and the result is, for example, an 18 yard run-back one zone right (inner circle). A now assumes the oiiense and the board is turned to permit A to Work 'Ihe ball thus continues in If desired, suitable means, not shown, may be employed for anchoring the ball in any position on the eld; as by providing the same with a pin and having a board of suitable material to receive same, or other means may be employed known to the art. It will also be understood that other vdevices for determining the initial position ofthe ball following the kick-off and for other open plays may be used in combination with the play selectors shown in which the result of anj offensive play as affected by the defensive play is determined. v In further reference to said play selectors it will be noted that the defensive playy indicia are .theI same as the oiensive play indicia,

thus `making the game easy to learn and to play, y

although thev same principle of our invention may -be emplo-yed by having the .defensive indicia .different from the offensive.

In the claims the terms rank and file are used in a'relative sense to mean that one row ofv results is crosswise to the other, without regard to their absolute position in space, i. e., whetherv vertical or horizontal.

It will be understood that various changes may be made in the above described specific embodiment` of ourinvention without departing from the spiritthereof or the scope of the appended claims.

1 Weclaim:

1,- In a fQQtball. same of the type having arepsgu resentation of a football field, and of a football movable upon said eld, a chart containing the results of selected plays, said results being arranged in ranks and files, each of said les terminating in an indicium denoting an offensive play, each of said ranks terminating in an indicium denoting a defensive play, an indicator movable to choose any one of Said oiensive indicia and extending across said ranks, an indicater movable to choose any one of said defensive indicia and extending across said files, the intersection of said indicators upon a given result being that of the oiensive play as affected by the defensive play, and a cover for said chart concealing in closed position said ranks and i'lles of results but permitting a View of said indicia by the respective players,

2. In a football game of the type having a representation of a football eld anda representation of a football movable upon said field, a chart containing results of selected plays arranged in ranks and les together with means for selecting any file of results by the oiensive player, said means including indicia on said chart respectively associated with each of said les, and

denoting offensive plays, means for selecting any rank of results by the defensive player simultaneously with said oiensive player, said means `last mentioned including indicia on said chart respectively associated vv'vith each of said ranks, and denoting defensive plays, the intersection of the selected file With the selected rank denoting the offensive play as aiected by the defensive p lay and determiningA the position of the ball upon the held, and means for concealing the results of plays constituting the ranks and Iiles but not said indicia While selections are made by the' 

